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GMI Newsletter - October 2008
Welcome to the October 2008 edition of our newsletter.
Choose an article below:
GMI appoints Luis Salazar as Chief Marketing Officer
Luis Salazar joins GMI's executive team after a successful 11-year career at Microsoft Corporation. He brings over 20 years of experience in international sales, marketing and general management to the company, and a proven track record launching new ventures in the software and services industries. Most recently, as General Manager for Marketing, he co-founded Microsoft Office Live, leading worldwide marketing and engineering teams through several successful product launches, reaching millions of customers with one of the first business-focused services from Microsoft that is monetized through advertising revenue.
"Since our inception in 1999, our vision has kept us at the forefront of technology innovation, defining the direction of the market and setting the gold standard for the global online research industry," explains Mike Brochu, GMI's President and CEO. "Working hand-in-hand with our technology and panel teams, Luis will leverage his extensive experience in SaaS (Software as a Service) and digital marketing to take that vision and our industry-leading market position to the next level in 2009, as we work on launching the next generation of technology solutions to fulfill the true promise of online research."
"There is a developing convergence of the market research and digital marketing industries, as both depend on technology centered around the individual to ensure relevance, quality and effectiveness of the outcome," comments Salazar. "By delivering on the technology promise, GMI will be in a unique position to enable its customers and partners and take the $28 billion global market research industry to a new level."
Read Luis' biography »
Read the full press release »
The GMI Webinar Series goes global in November
APAC
Measuring the success of sponsorship: The one number you need to monitor and grow in any business
In a recent study, 50% of Chinese survey respondents incorrectly recognized Nike as the Official Global Sponsor of the Beijing Olympics, while the correct answer is Adidas. Corporations can effectively measure the success of their sponsorships by monitoring three key components:
- Brand recognition
- Brand recommendation
- Brand attitudes
Measuring sponsorship effectiveness within the marketing mix has always been challenging, and as such, its high costs can be difficult to justify. Come hear Peter Steyn, Co-founder and Managing Director of Hong Kong-based consulting firm Aha! Research, as he shares best practices from his Beijing Olympics study and presents how to evaluate the effectiveness of a sponsorship program.
Register for the webinar »
About Aha! Research »
Need Chinese sample? Contact us »
Sign up for future GMI Webinar Series alerts »
Panel spotlight: Japan
Japan is a lucrative, technologically savvy market with a dense urban population of over 127 million. Although online surveying is common and internet penetration is very high at 67.10%, the land of the rising sun remains a mystery to many researchers, mainly due to dramatic differences in language, culture and geography.
GMI's network of strategic partnerships in the region provides access to over 500,000 Japanese panelists, backed by GMI's high-quality survey fielding services. GMI teams on the ground review online questionnaires and help localize them if need be by using accurate and appropriate survey language, and paying special attention to local and regional customs, which ensures optimum research results.
Need Japanese sample? Contact us »
Download the GMI Global Panel Book (PDF) »
Download the GMI Specialty Panel Book (PDF) »
Aha! Research study reveals Olympics sponsors bring home gold
A survey conducted by Hong Kong consulting firm Aha! Research, and powered by GMI, has found that the 2008 Beijing Olympics Official Sponsors have enjoyed significant benefits as a result of their involvement. Sponsor brands were shown to have experienced higher brand recommendation and brand attitudes compared with non-sponsor brands.
According to estimates, each of the top 12 sponsors of the 2008 Beijing Olympics spent about US$70 million to have their brand associated with this truly global event. Although watched by up to four billion people worldwide, it remains difficult for marketers to assess the impact of sponsorship on their business.
Measuring the effectiveness of sponsorship within the marketing mix has always been challenging, and as such, its high costs can be difficult to justify. In this online survey conducted among 1,330 Chinese respondents randomly selected from GMI's online consumer panel, Aha! Research employed the crucial measures of brand recommendation and brand attitude to assess the marketing effectiveness of the brands that sponsored the event against those that did not. Awareness of sponsorship is a strong determinant on the scores of both these measurements, which also underlines the value of so-called ambush marketing.
"This research is groundbreaking in terms of understanding the effect of sponsorship, consumer awareness of it, and the importance of the two critical measures of brand recommendation and brand attitude," explains Peter Steyn, Managing Director of Aha! Research. "Research in most industries has found that high levels of brand recommendation and positive attitudes toward a brand are the most effective measures in determining brand loyalty and predicting future growth and profitability. This survey found that not only sponsorship itself, but more importantly, sponsorship awareness (whether accurate or not), differentiates brands on these two crucial measurements. Both measures exert a significant influence on consumer decision-making, as people often simplify buying decisions by opting for familiar brands."
Brand recognition
The survey covered 29 official Beijing Olympic sponsors and partner brands. Ranked on recognition of brand being an official sponsor, the top five were Coca-Cola, China Mobile, Lenovo, Bank of China and PICC. Those sponsors that achieved less than 20% recognition included Manulife, Atos Origin, Johnson & Johnson and BHP Billiton. Among the 41 non-sponsor brands mentioned in the survey, those with high levels of incorrect brand sponsorship recognition were Li Ning (67%), China Life Insurance Company (54%), Nike (50%) and Sina (41%).
Brand recommendation
In the analysis of the survey data, 25 comparisons were made between a sponsor and a non-sponsoring competitor, for instance Air China compared to non-sponsor United Airlines, and Budweiser compared to non-sponsor Heineken. In all but 11 comparisons, the sponsor brand scored significantly higher on respondent's likelihood to recommend the brand to friends and family than the non-sponsor brands.
However, the survey data suggests that recognition of a brand being a sponsor is more crucial. All nine sponsor brands tested on brand recommendation showed a significantly higher score among respondents aware of their sponsorship than those who were not aware. This is also true for non-sponsor brands. Eleven of the 15 non-sponsor brands measured on brand recommendation also scored higher among those who incorrectly identified the non-sponsor brand as a sponsor. These findings clearly show the importance of sponsorship awareness among consumers.
Brand attitude
The survey measured consumer attitude towards five brand sponsors - Air China, Bank of China, Tsingtao, Samsung and Adidas - against their five non-sponsor counterparts - United Airlines, ICBC, Heineken, Nokia and Nike. All sponsors, except Samsung and Adidas, scored significantly higher for brand attitude than their competitors. However, among all the sponsor brands, scores were significantly higher among respondents who correctly recognized the sponsor brand. Similarly, among the non-sponsor brands, scores were significantly higher among respondents who incorrectly identified the non-sponsor brand as a sponsor - except for Nokia.
As with the brand recommendation measure, the survey showed that where respondents correctly recognized a sponsor brand, or incorrectly identified non-sponsoring brands as sponsors, they had a more positive attitude towards the brand. Clearly for sponsoring brands, it is crucial to ensure high consumer awareness of their sponsorship to maximize their return on investment.
"Survey results suggest that the investment brands made in sponsoring the 2008 Beijing Olympics are possibly justified for most, but likely not all," concludes Steyn. "Millions of dollars were spent this year by the sponsors of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Our research indicates that most of these brands are enjoying improved recognition, attitudes towards their brand and brand recommendation. But there's a sting in the tail - it is not enough to be a sponsor - brands must take the initiative before, during, and after the event to communicate their leading role to consumers to make the most of the significant sums they have invested."
Register for the Aha! Research / GMI webinar »
Download the GMI Global Panel Book (PDF) »
Request a Chinese sample quote »
GMI ranks #36 among Washington's fastest-growing private companies
For the fifth consecutive year, GMI features on Puget Sound Business Journal's list of Washington's 100 Fastest-growing Private Companies, ranking #36 with a three-year revenue growth of 160 percent between 2005 and 2007. The rankings, which the publication releases annually in October, measure the revenue growth of independent, privately held companies with headquarters in Washington State.
"We are honored to once again be part of this prestigious list," says Mike Brochu, President and CEO of GMI. "In today's challenging economy, it is becoming increasingly important for businesses to keep a finger on the pulse of global consumer trends in real time to remain agile in the face of changing market conditions. With our global respondent panels and wide range of services, we enable companies worldwide to conduct global research to stay ahead of the curve and predict market changes, so they make the best strategic decisions possible."
GMI attributes its steady growth to the longevity of its customer relationships and the hard work of its 250 employees located on four continents.
Read the full press release »
Learn more about GMI awards »
Contact us »
Quirk's article: Make it matter
Authored by Miranda Kizer, Vice President, Qualitative Research at G&S Research, Inc., this article offers insight into developing and delivering pharmaceutical market research that improves brand quality. Published courtesy of Quirk's Marketing Research Review, June 2008 issue.
Who's new at GMI
Amy Johnson, Account Manager - Minneapolis, USA
Amitabh Mukherjee, Project Manager - Sydney, Australia
Marie O'Malley, Client Operations Coordinator - Boston, USA
Scott Richards, Account Executive - Coppell, TX, USA
Puise Pang, Feasibility and Proposal Manager - 's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands
Luis Salazar, Chief Marketing Officer - Bellevue, USA
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